One of the benefits of raising and growing our own food, is that it’s not unusual for us to enjoy meals most folks would only taste at a high-end restaurant. This bacon wrapped quail is one of those stellar dishes.

Much like with the ducks that we raise, if our homestead had such a thing as a “private reserve” – quail would be it.

We raise all of our poultry (quail included) on pasture. These are fat, healthy birds, with a prime nutritional profile. Lots of care goes into raising them, and I’d never consider doing it on a large enough scale for market purposes.

So when we do put quail on our table, it’s with a heart full of gratitude and thanksgiving.

When you’re blessed with a piece of land, and a lifestyle that permits raising your own meat, I think it changes something about the way we approach food preparation. There’s a solemn grace to preparing a meal around a bird that’s been nurtured by your homestead since the day it hatched.

For me, it’s an invitation to creativity. It’s exciting to find new favorite ways to prepare these “private reserve” meats, and often before butchering day, the kids and I will pull out big stacks of cookbooks, looking for inspiration.

Last weekend, I’d been planning to make bacon-wrapped quail, but actually had a maple reduction in mind to glaze them with.

As I reached into the fridge for the bacon, though, I found myself grabbing the jar of pesto. And not just any pesto, but a particular favorite pesto that my Dad recently introduced me to. I couldn’t put the jar down…and that’s how this recipe was born.

I hope your family loves it as much as we do! While one might not consider this “kid fare” – my little ones find the portion sizes to be charmingly petite. And anything that’s wrapped in bacon is a sure winner anyway!